The Lion and The Badger
by AutarkyAutumn
Summary: Hogwarts AU: Dean Winchester has begun his 5th year of Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry and doesn't have high hopes for the upcoming year. However with the arrival of a certain new student with a slightly darker past than he would've hoped, Dean's world has been turned upside down. (Sorry I suck at summaries) Harry Potter/ Supernatural, Destiel
1. Platform Nine and Three Quarters

_Disclaimer: Sadly I do not own the characters in this story nor do I have the brilliance to create a world quite like the Harry Potter one. Only the animals mentioned are mine. No Copyright infringement intended. _

_This is one of my first fanfics written so constructive criticism is always appreciated. Nasty comments are not. Enjoy!_

_Platform 9 ¾_

Dean Winchester stood on platform 9 ¾ quarters admiring the Hogwarts Express train as he had done for the past 5 years he had attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. If asked he would have been able to tell you that the Hogwarts Express was a no. 5972 "Olton Hall" steam locomotive and that it had been acquired by the Ministry sometime between 1819 and 1849 between the terms of Ministers Grogan Stump and Evangeline Orpington. Having discovered a keen interest in the mechanics of muggle transportation after his father had bought a 1967 Chevrolet Impala sometime around his 4th birthday, Dean was now somewhat of an expert when it came to old-fashioned muggle cars and their usages. This had broadened out somewhat into wizarding transportation after receiving his Hogwarts letter and first setting eyes on the train before him.

"Oi Dean, hurry up!"

Dean tore his eyes away from the masterpiece in front of him and instead turned to look at his younger brother who was at that moment in time attempting to haul his trunk onto the train. Although Sam had had an undeniable growth spurt over the summer (already towering over most of the seventh years even though he was just starting his third) he was still having trouble lifting the old and tattered trunk off the trolley and onto the train steps. Merlin, Sam's blazed husky rat squeaked irritably from his cage as it rocked side to side before Sam changed his tactic from pulling the trunk to pushing it. Dean smiled before jogging over to help.

"Want a hand Sasquatch?" Dean grinned coming to a stop by Sammy as the younger boy glared up at him, halting in his futile attempts to move the trunk.

"Whatever, you're just jealous that I can reach the top shelves and you can't" he smirked reaching for one end of the trunk as Dean grabbed the other.

"Dude why on earth would I need to reach the top shelf when I can just levitate the damn thing down to my level?"

"Fair point" Sam mused; laughing as Dean nearly dropped his end of the trunk as they lifted it onto the train and started to carry it towards the luggage compartment.

"Jesus Sammy! What the hell you got in here? Bricks?"

"Books. I wanted to get a head start on this years reading along with the one's I'll be needing for class"

"So you packed a library? Christ Sammy, you gotta lighten up. Get out, have fun. Not spend your entire time studying" Dean moaned as between them they managed to haul the trunk into the luggage compartment before heading back towards the train door to claim the rest of their things.

"Dean I am having fun, I've already planned three study sessions a week with Ash and Charlie and booked a permanent table at the library. I'm even planning on asking Professor McGonagall for some one to one help on Transfiguration since I feel like I'm lagging slightly…"

"Dude that is not fun, in fact what you just described is the opposite of fun. Look you get to go to Hogsmeade this year, why don't you go out and explore with your nerdy friends. Just anything to get you away from those damn books you keep burying your head in"

"And I will, I just don't want to fall behind in my work" Sam stated earnestly, reaching down to pick up Merlin's cage before leaving the trolley at the side of the station wall.

"Damn typical Ravenclaw attitude" Dean muttered under his breath, before yelping in pain as Sam hit him playfully on the shoulder.

"Don't be a wuss Dean, now go and collect Pie before the train leaves without you" Sam grinned racing onto the train, Merlin's cage held high above his head as to keep it from bumping into the crowds of Hogwarts students all bustling about trying to get on the train.

Dean grumbled to himself before going to claim the great horned owl, which was looking anxiously from its cage.

"Chill dude, I'm not gunna forget you" Dean said softly, reaching through the bars to scratch the side of the owls head comfortingly. The owl hooted in response before closing his eyes and leaning into the touch. Dean chuckled softly at the owl's reaction. Pie had been given to Dean as an 11th birthday present after being accepted into Hogwarts by Bobby and Ellen Singer, his adoptive parents. He had also been a slight bribe as a way of taking Dean's mind off the fact that he and his brother had just become orphans the week before. Dean had been grateful of course to receive such a cool present but had felt bad about it instantly. Bobby and Ellen didn't have an abundance of money so anything new was to be considered a treasure in their household and owls were expensive, he'd always assumed he'd just take a garden toad with him or use the family owl to give and receive mail. Nothing could have prepared him for the sight of Pie sat happily in his cage as Dean had come down that morning. Of course, being given Pie meant that cutbacks had to be made in other areas of the household.

For instance by the time Sam's Hogwarts letter arrived Bobby and Ellen still didn't have any spare cash to spend on an owl for him as well, making Dean feel guiltier by the minute. Luckily Sam was more than thrilled with the baby rat they gave him instead and now took Merlin everywhere with him, loving nothing more than to sit in a corner with a book on his lap and Merlin nestled on his shoulder or in a pocket. Of course Dean still felt bad about having so much money spent on him even now and would probably feel even worse when it came to getting Jo her present next year for when she would un-doubtably get her letter as well, however he couldn't bring him self to regret getting Pie even for a minute. The owl was too special to him to do that. Pie had been there for him when no one else could be. Whenever Dean was upset he would sit with him and chew on Dean's ear until he cheered up and was faithful to the bitter end, never once leaving Dean's side unless told to or sent somewhere else.

_**OOMPH!**_

Dean fell to the floor as something extremely heavy collided with him at breakneck speed. Pie screeched loudly, both through being extremely disgruntled at having himself and his cage suddenly dropped on the floor and (as his protective instincts set in) ready to attack whatever had caused his master to fall to the ground in a heap. People had started to crowd at this point, some looking worried, most just laughing.

"Son of a bitch" Dean groaned, quickly crawling towards the manic owl and setting his cage the right way up.

"DEAN! Are you okay?' Sam yelled pushing his way off the train and through the crowds of people that had started to gather before helping his brother up.

"Yeah I'm fine, Pie's a bit pissed though" he winced as he rubbed his knee, observing the puffing owl by his side before finally looking at what had collided with him.

His assailant was a boy, no older than Dean, who was at that moment trying to collect his fallen belongings as quickly as humanly possible.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry" he mumbled to no one in particular, his voice rising and becoming more panicked as he continued to collect all the books and clothing that had exploded out of the trunk upon impact.

"Hey, no biggy, not the first time someone's jumped me and it certainly won't be the last" Dean replied as he and Sam both reached down at the same time to help return the fallen items back into their rightful place. The boy merely froze where he was, eyes wide as he watched what they were doing. When the trunk was righted again both brothers stood up waiting for the new kid to introduce himself. When the boy continued to stay where he was sat on the floor, one arm clutching something to his chest, Dean reached down his hand as a way to help him up. Two big panicked blue eyes stared up at him before they and their owner disappeared as the boy leapt up, grabbing his trunk and racing through the crowds of people before leaping onto the train and out of sight.

"What the hell do you think that was about?" Sam wondered out loud, looking just as baffled as Dean was.

"Not a clue" he replied stunned before quickly picking up Pie and racing onto the train with Sam as the whistle for the trains departure blew.


	2. Meeting in the Carriage

_Disclaimer: Sadly I do not own the characters in this story nor do I have the brilliance to create a world quite like the Harry Potter one. Only the animals mentioned are mine. No Copyright infringement intended. _

_This is one of my first fanfics written so constructive criticism is always appreciated. Nasty comments are not. Enjoy!_

**_Meeting in the Carriage _**

Dean pushed his way through the busy corridor still thinking about the strange boy that had run into him. He had looked about Dean's age yet he'd never seen the boy before. Not really an unusual circumstance since Hogwarts was huge and there wasn't a hope in hell of knowing everyone in the school year, yet it was guaranteed that you'd run into at least most people once whilst flitting around the corridors and although Dean wracked his brains he couldn't recall even seeing the boy around the school grounds and to be perfectly honest the kid wasn't exactly hard to miss. From what Dean could make of him he was quite short, stood maybe a head shorter than himself and was kinda slim. Petite was probably the best way to describe him. He had short messy brown hair, as if he'd just run his hands through it beforehand and the brightest blue eyes Dean had ever seen in his life. But it was his clothes that had really made him stand out.

The kid had been wearing some sort of three-piece suit with messy red converse shoes to go with it. That combined with a large tan overcoat thrown over the top made one hell of a weird outfit. However what had really stuck out to Dean was the panicked look on the boy's face as he and Sam had tried to help him up. The kid had looked terrified as if they were going to strike out at him. Dean sighed as he felt his protective urges set in, a feeling he really only ever got when something concerned Sam.

"Rawk!" Dean was brought out of his thoughts as Pie screeched loudly in response to his cage hitting the corridor wall as the train took a sharp turn.

"Alright, alright don't get your feathers in a twist, I'll find us a seat" Dean grumbled to the owl, stroking its head reassuringly before looking into a few of the compartments to see if any were free.

Usually Dean sat with Sam and his nerd duo on the ride to Hogwarts, however there was only so much smart talk one could take before the boredom levels actually reached catatonic. Charlie Bradbury and Chuck Shirley, who were both Ravenclaws, were Sam's only real friends at Hogwarts and often were at his side for most of the school year. Charlie was a slightly manic fourth year that was rumored to be both the best looking girl in Ravenclaw (with her shocking curly red hair which was always put up in a high ponytail and beautiful porcelain skin) but also the strangest due to her eccentric personality and mad energy which could only be achieved through eating way too many Bertie Botts every flavour beans. Chuck Shirley was Charlie's complete opposite. Shy and sort of twitchy looking, he was a guy that liked to keep to himself mostly, only coming out of his shell around his friends which mainly involved him showing them his notes about the latest book he was writing. Both were nice enough kids but were a bit too Ravenclaw-ish for Dean to fully have a good time around them.

Dean did a double take as he looked into a seemingly empty compartment only to spot the boy he had seen earlier. He was sat leaning against the window with his knees held tightly against his chest, his eyes red and puffy as if he had been crying, shaking slightly.

It took only a second for Dean to decide that he would make it his mission to befriend the boy by any means necessary. Looking down at Pie as if for confirmation, Dean smiled as the owl hooted in response to the unanswered question before hauling open the compartment door and leaning in.

"Hey, mind if I sit here?"

The boy sat up quickly, rubbing his eyes vigorously before shaking his head towards Dean.

"Awesome" Dean grinned stepping inside the compartment before closing the door behind him and settling down on the seat opposite. The silence that greeted him was deafening.

"Well, uh, since I didn't get a chance to introduce myself earlier, I'm Dean" he smiled, offering his hand to shake with the nervous boy in front of him.

"Castiel" the boy replied apprehensively, his arms moving tighter around himself as Dean lent forward. Sensing his discomfort, Dean opted to change his tactics, instead deciding to try for a more chatty approach.

"Cool name dude, what is it Greek?"

"Latin"

"Latin! Wow, uh interesting"

Castiel curled in on himself slightly, his arms tightening around his legs as if expecting to be ridiculed.

"Oh, no, I just meant it's unusual" Dean rushed, his arm reaching out before remembering Castiel's discomfort beforehand. "Um, does it, uh, does it mean anything?"

Castiel eyed him warily before replying.

"It's angelic," he mumbled, eyeing Dean up and down, "after the angel of Thursday"

"Dude, that's awesome" Dean smiled, his grin getting wider as he noticed the sides of Castiel's mouth turn up slightly.

Before Dean could attempt to keep the conversation rolling, what appeared to be a ball of skin and wool fell from the shelf above, landing lightly into the space between them.

"Son of a bitch!" Dean screeched, leaping back into the seat (in a very manly fashion of course) "What the hell is that?!"

"A cat" Cas replied worriedly as he unfurled himself quickly and lifted the purring ball of skin into his arms and onto his shoulder. The cat meowed happily, plumping Castiel's trench coat gently before spreading out along his shoulders, her limbs dangling on either side of his body.

"That is not a cat. Cats are fluffy and, y'know, have whiskers and shit" Dean groused, eyeing the beast in front of him. Pie screeched from his cage, pecking at the bars uselessly as he eyed up the cat in front of him. Castiel sent a panicked glance in the bird's direction before reaching up to scratch behind the cat's ears.

"She's a sphinx cat; it is in her DNA not to have fur"

"Who in their right mind would deliberately breed a cat to look like a hand?"

"She doesn't look like a hand and she doesn't need fur to function as a cat"

Dean smiled slightly, happy to have finally gotten some full-length sentences out of Castiel's mouth. His smile widened as a thought suddenly struck.

"Hey cats have fur to stay warm, yeah?"

"That is correct"

"Then how come fluffy here's wearing a stripy jumper if she doesn't need to be warm, which of course I assume is a function needed to be a cat?" Dean smirked, waiting for the banter to start. Castiel's cheeks started to redden.

"Look, mock all you want to but the list said to bring a cat, an owl, a toad or a rat. Since I wasn't allowed a toad or a rat, the choice was either a cat or an owl and birds freak me out," Castiel stated, his face growing pinker as he continued his speech.

"Plus I'm allergic to fur so a cat with no fur was the only option but she gets cold okay, so I made her a jumper to keep her warm and if that's a problem to you then feel free to leave!" Castiel leaned further into the compartment wall, his eyes looking out of the window pointedly as if already acknowledging that Dean would most likely leave after his outburst and had already started to put on an "I don't care" front.

"Hey dude, I'm sorry if I offended…" Dean paused when he saw the tear start to fall out of Castiel's eye and run down his face. Castiel brushed it away furiously as it started to reach his chin before going back to staring out of the window. Dean quickly changed tactic upon realizing that a worded apology was most likely not the best way to go. He instead reached up to scratch the side of the cat's face, Castiel watching his every move warily. The small furless cat sniffed Dean's fingers for a few seconds before jumping down off Castiel's shoulder and padding her way gracefully over to Dean's lap where she proceeded to roll onto her back and present her stomach. Dean smiled triumphantly before getting to work on some serious cat tummy scratching. Reaching under the woolen green and blue striped jumper to scratch her chest before attempting to make things right again with Castiel.

"Well, uh, what's her name then?"

"Socks"

Dean pulled a face before he could conceal it, glancing up quickly at Castiel only to see him already looking at him. Castiel shrugged slightly but didn't seem overly concerned about Dean's less than keen attitude towards his choice in names.

"She likes socks, when we brought her home from the Magical Menagerie she jumped straight into my sock drawer and refused to come out for an hour. Her favourite past time is to drag my socks from the drawer and play with them" he smiled fondly, reaching forward to scratch her under her chin. Socks grabbed his finger between her giant paws before chewing on it with gusto.

"Well, she's certainly got balls I'll give her that" Dean snorted, picking the cat up gently but slightly awkwardly before placing her in Castiel's lap.

"So how come you weren't allowed to bring a rat or toad?" he questioned, hoping to learn more about

Castiel while the boy was finally talking again.

Castiel's body language changed abruptly. Stiffening, he refused to make eye contact.

"Pride"

"Yours or…"

"My brothers"

"Ah, overbearing brother huh"

"I guess" Castiel mumbled, his lower lip starting to tremble again no matter how hard the boy tried to hide it.

"So, uh, how come I've only seen you since today? No offence but you're not exactly hard to miss"

"I was homeschooled"

"Homeschooled? How does that work? I thought we weren't allowed to use magic outside of school"

"I didn't show any signs of magic until recently. Brothers thought I was a squib"

"I don't think I've ever heard of anyone getting their magic this late on in life"

"Neither had anyone else"

"How'd you realize you had magic?" Dean inquired, he didn't want to pry but the more Castiel spoke the more he wanted to know.

"Set the kitchen on fire"

Dean stared at him incredulously.

"You blew up your kitchen?"

"Yeah"

"Dude, that's awesome" Dean marveled, grinning until he noticed the emotionless expression on Castiel's face.

"So, uh, what made your mojo flare up?" he questioned awkwardly.

"Fight"

"Your parents?"

"Older brothers"

"Oh yeah, fights with bros suck"

Castiel tilted his head in question. Dean attempted to ignore the feelings that started to stir in reaction to the rather cute quirk the boy was displaying.

"I got a younger brother, Sammy. Love the kid to pieces but… he's stubborn. You saw him earlier actually, he was the giant kid with the rat on his shoulder" Castiel nodded before replying.

"Have you any other siblings?"

"Sort of. Got a younger sister, Jo who's about 10. She's Bobby and Ellen's kid though so biologically she's nothing to do with me but… family" he finished with a shrug.

"Bobby and Ellen are not your parents"

Dean swallowed. He never liked talking about his parents, not even with Sammy yet for some reason he found himself replying.

"No. Mom died when I was four and Dad died just before I turned eleven. Bobby and Ellen took us in, practically raised Sammy" he stumbled, not wanting to go into any further detail. Castiel appeared to understand and didn't ask why. Dean liked him already.

"What about you? What's your situation?"

"Never knew my parents. My father impregnated a woman as a result of a one-night stand and nine months later I was left on his doorstep. Father disappeared after that. My older brothers and sister took care of me."

"That must've sucked"

Castiel merely shrugged in response. "I've never known anything different" he mused, flattening Sock's ears against her head as he proceeded to stroke her face.

A comfortable silence consumed them, both boys quite content to sit in each other's silence, a rarity for them both.

It was interrupted, however as the compartment door swung open to reveal an extremely manic looking Charlie. Her long hair tied back in a messy bun, currently held in place by her wand. Large brown glasses were balanced precariously on the top of her nose whilst her Ravenclaw uniform was as slapdash as always. Unlike most Ravenclaws with their perfect uniform and stiff upper lips, Charlie preferred the more comfortable look of black trousers, white shirt with a visible Star Wars t-shirt underneath and regulation shoes with the added comfort of her jumper tied loosely around her waist whilst her tie hung from around her shoulders.

"Hey Dean" she chirped happily, leaning in to examine the compartment for beans before retreating somewhat disappointedly.

"Charlie, thought you were nerding with Sammy and Twitchy"

"Meh, nerding is fun and all but I thought I'd give blowing up half the train in an attempt to amuse myself a try and since I know just how much of an expert you are at that, I thought I'd come find ya" she smirked, giving him a wink.

"Hey! That was one time"

"Carriage One in First year and Carriage Four in third" she counted, grinning as Dean sent her a Winchester bitchface before finally noticing Castiel sitting quietly in the corner.

"Oh, and who's this dreamy, David Tennant mimicking style icon?"

"Charlie, Cas. Cas, Charlie"

Castiel raised an eyebrow at the nickname but made no move to correct him.

"Hi" she smiled, waving a hand in his direction before noticing Socks.

"Hey, you brought Yoda to school!"

Cas looked confused. "Yoda…"

"Star Wars reference, let's me know that you're from an all wizarding family cause quite frankly even hermit muggles know who Yoda is" she babbled.

Dean decided to intervene before Castiel's head exploded.

"Charlie you're infecting the compartment with knowledge, leave before I start regenerating brain cells"

"Have it your way but you should know that we're about 2 miles from Hogwarts, better put on your armor. Peace out bitches" she grinned, holding up her hand in a Vulcan salute before sliding the door behind her.

Dean smiled fondly after her before laughing at the bemused, albeit slightly frightened expression on Castiel's face.

"Don't worry dude, Charlie's a bit wacky around the edges but her hearts in the right place"

"Do the teachers allow her to wear her uniform like that?"

"Don't think they have much of a choice in the matter. Charlie has a bit of an issue with authority and whatnot, fortunately for her she's a bit too valuable for the school to expel. She and Ash are too smart for their own good so the overlords let them get away with crap so long as they keep making the school look good"

"Oh…okay"

"We should probably get changed, don't want the fuzz hating you on your first day and all" Dean groused, reaching up to haul the two luggage cases from the space above. Castiel smiled in thanks before un-hooking Socks from his lap and placing her gently onto the seat.

"What house you in anyway? Or do you have to wait to be sorted with the first years?"

"I visited at the end of last year and had the test then. I'm a Hufflepuff apparently" Cas answered matter of factly, reaching into his luggage to pull out his robes.

"Aw that sucks, thought you'd be a Gryffindor, I could've shown you around the place"

"And you can't now?" Cas asked removing his coat and tie before pulling his shirt over his head to reveal the smooth, creamy skin of his stomach and chest. Dean's cheeks flushed before he could pull his eyes away, mentally telling himself to get a grip before answering.

"Uh, well I guess I still could if you want me too. What lesson have you got after the welcoming ceremony?" he flushed, turning to drag his own t-shirt off, before joining Cas in sporting the regulation black robes (though his were much more shabbier than Cas' due to the inability to afford new robes this year).

"Herbology"

"Ditto, I can meet you outside the Great hall if you want"

"I'd like that very much Dean" Cas smiled reaching down to pick up Socks before opening the door and stepping outside to wait for Dean.

"No problem" Dean replied, grabbing Pie's cage before following suit.


	3. Welcome Back

_Disclaimer: Sadly I do not own the characters in this story nor do I have the brilliance to create a world quite like the Harry Potter one. Only the animals mentioned are mine. No Copyright infringement intended. _

_This is one of my first fanfics written so constructive criticism is always appreciated. Nasty comments are not. Enjoy!_

_Sorry for the long wait for updates, A-levels are not fun. Not to sure on this chapter but I felt the characters needed a bit more interaction before the next chapter :) Don't forget to review!_

The welcoming celebration passed with its usual amount of boring events. First years were sorted, food was eaten and announcements were made. Dean sat on his own at the large oak table, ignoring his Gryffindor peers. Dean had never bothered to make friends at Hogwarts due to his father's need to travel for work meaning that staying in one area was rare. Although he knew he'd stay at the school until he passed his exams the habit had stuck, meaning that five years later he was still sat alone at the Gryffindor table. Sometimes he passed the time either doodling pictures of muggle transportation or his favourite Quidditch team the Moose Jaw Meteorites, whom of which Dean enjoyed their love of celebratory stunts whenever they won a match, which was always! But usually his time was spent watching Sam and his friends smiling and having fun.

Since losing his mother Dean had always made it his goal in life to watch over his brother, more so after his father passed away. Watching Sammy have fun and enjoy himself made up for all the loneliness Dean himself felt at these times.

This year, however, was different. Dean looked around the bulging hall, filled with students shoving their faces, as they got ready for the day ahead, straining to find Castiel amongst the crowd. His eyes scanned the Hufflepuff table with little luck. Dean sighed to himself before returning to the pie on his plate. The apple pie was okay at Hogwarts; sure beat the muggle supermarket one's he used to buy when he was a kid, but he'd be lying if he said it was better than Ellen's homemade creations back home. He was halfway through his plate when he felt someone pull timidly against the back of his robes. He turned sharply to come face to face with a nervous looking Castiel, the model student if not for his unruly hair, which seemed to naturally look as if someone had spent hours running their hands through it. Sex hair, if you will.

"Hey Cas, how's Hogwarts treating you so far?"

"Fine, thank you. Everyone has been extremely welcoming" Cas smiled, his hands twitching slightly by his side.

"Yeah that's Hufflepuffs for you" Dean smirked, rising from the oak table before grabbing Cas' arm and dragging him out of the hall and away from curious eyes.

"I wasn't sure if you still meant what you said, about us walking together," Cas mumbled as they walked, his eyes darting from the floor to Dean as they headed towards the greenhouse.

"Course I did, why wouldn't I?"

"I don't know, I guess you just seem like someone who hangs out with cooler people"

"And you're not cool?"

"I was classified as a squib up until nine weeks ago and if what Gabriel says is true then I don't think that's cool" Cas spoke before crashing into Dean as the older boy jolted to a halt.

"Gabriel? As in Gabriel Novak?" he asked incredulously.

"Yeah" Cas muttered offhand, rubbing at his nose in pain before straightening his already perfect tie.

"The douche-bag Slytherin who gave ton-tongue toffee's to first years a few years back?"

"Probably. Sounds like him"

"Well how come he wasn't with you yesterday? If he's your brother and all ditching you was a pretty sucky move"

"He wanted to but Michael was rather insistent that he shouldn't"

"Why?"

Cas' features changed to an expression which Dean guessed he hoped was carefree but was let down by the look in his eyes.

"My brother has always believed that the best way to get anywhere in life is to do it yourself, it's the only thing he and Lucifer seem to agree on"

"Lucifer? Wow your dad really went all out on the angel theme didn't he? What's your sister called, Mary?"

"No Anna, the virgin Mary was never an angel Dean"

Dean smiled as Cas failed to sense the sarcasm; clearly he hadn't picked up much from Gabriel. Dean didn't know much about the older Slytherin apart from the basics. Short, blonde and a pain in the arse to anyone who had the misfortune to cross him, it was rumoured that if you crossed his palm with sugar he'd leave you alone for the day. At least that's what the older years said to make the first years feel better.

He himself had had the misfortune of running into the evil midget a few years back when he was comforting Sammy as his brother nursed a black eye from a Weasley boxing telescope. Dean had confronted him all guns a blazing but Gabriel had only laughed and carried on his way, shoving a lollipop in his mouth as he'd turned the corner. It was hard to believe that he and Castiel were related; they barely looked like each other for pities sake.

"Well if it makes you feel any better, you're the coolest person I've met so far"

Castiel smiled discreetly, "I've never been cool before"

"Well don't let it go to your head" Dean grumbled, throwing his arm around the younger boy's shoulders, "I'm not exactly top dog around here so my opinion is hardly gospel".

Cas smiled, glancing at the arm hung around his shoulders before looking around the walls as he tried to ignore the feeling of butterflies in his stomach. He couldn't mess up another friendship, he just couldn't, and he'd promised Gabriel and Anna that he wouldn't put himself in this situation again. Not again. So, like the dutiful little brother that he was, he continued out of the castle with Dean but hid his excitement under an expression of indifference.


	4. The Good doesn't always out way the Bad

_Disclaimer: Sadly I do not own the characters in this story nor do I have the brilliance to create a world quite like the Harry Potter one. Only the animals mentioned are mine. No Copyright infringement intended. _

_This is one of my first fanfics written so constructive criticism is always appreciated. Nasty comments are not. Enjoy!_

_Sorry this is a bit short and ridiculously late but I had loads of home drama throughout last week and didn't have time to write. _

_Also I would like to thank Biku-sensei-sez-meow for all your wonderful reviews! They literally make my day and force me to write more :D_

Herbology was never Dean's favourite subject. Too much faffing around with plants with funny names and not enough action no matter how many times Professor Longbottom tried to spruce things up. Literally spruce things up, he once brought in a spruce tree especially just to make the joke.

However after today he felt he might just be able to bare it this year. Unlike him, Cas flourished in the class. He took an extreme interest in everything the Professor had to say and seemed to be able to differentiate between each screaming green thing that was thrown at him. Dean asked him if he was a keen gardener at home only to learn that he'd never been near a plant in his life. Typical Hufflepuff then, he thought fondly as he watched Cas stroke the baby mandrake's leaves as the thing screamed bloody murder.

"Enjoying yourself?" He shouted over the shrieking plant, his heart rate quickening as Cas looked up to grin at him.

"Immensely" he smiled before pouring clean soil into the much larger pot, covering the mandrake and ultimately cutting off its screams.

"How can you possibly be enjoying this? It's practically babysitting for plants, which is just like regular babysitting except you don't get any gratitude or money"

"I like the feeling of helping people. Even if I, as you say, don't get any gratitude in return" Cas smiled warmly before removing his earmuffs to listen to the approaching teacher.

"Castiel I need to see your fingers" Professor Longbottom ordered happily, his voice light and playful as he held out his hand expectantly.

"My finger's sir?" Castiel repeated, his eyes flashing to Dean in question before starting to remove his gloves at Dean's bemused look.

"Yeah give em here" he smiled reaching forward to grab Castiel's fingers as the boy removed his thick gloves.

"Hmmm interesting" The Professor muttered, turning over the boy's hands as if trying to find something.

"Are you looking for something in particular, sir?"

"It's strange, after watching the way you handled that mandrake I could've sworn you had green fingers" he chuckled, releasing Castiel's hand to ruffle the young students hair as Castiel looked on confused.

"Well what d'you think Dean? I've been working on my jokes for this year" Longbottom smiled proudly. Dean smiled in reassurance, leaning back further into his seat. For the past four years Professor Longbottom had tried to get Dean to open up and contribute towards his class. This usually involved terrible puns and physical contact, both of which Dean had no desire to be subjected to but would tolerate for a simple life. After all, the guy was only trying to do his job.

"Better than your usual ones" he smirked, "keep it up". The Professor grinned estactically before glancing between the two boys for a few moments. An awkward silence fell over them as Dean silently longed for the Professor to leave. Dean didn't know how many classes he would have with Cas this year and he wanted to make sure that he took advantage of every single moment. A look of realization seemed to dawn on Professor Longbottom's face as he coughed in embarrassment.

"Well, uh, good work boys, one of the fastest in the class. 10 points to Hufflepuff and…uh…Gryffindor" He smiled, winking in Dean's direction before moving over to help Adam remove the death grip his baby mandrake had on his finger. Dean felt the heat rush to his face as he watched the Professor's back disappear amongst the other students. Trust him to notice.

"I don't understand what just happened" Cas spoke quietly, glancing worriedly around the greenhouse.

"It's nothing, he does that a lot. The guys' as nuts as a wrackspurt but his heart's in the right place. He was one of the survivors of the big war that happened right here in Hogwarts."

"He fought alongside Harry Potter?" Cas asked excitedly.

"Yeah, he doesn't talk about it much though so I wouldn't bother asking him for any gory details. He's engaged to Miss Abott the landlady at the Leaky Cauldron"

"Her leaking cauldron?"

"No, **The **Leaky Cauldron, it's a pub in Diagon ally. I'll take you there sometime if you want, the pie's not great but the company's what you're really paying for" he winked, waiting to see if Cas would take the bait. Although Cas wasn't what he'd usually go for in a guy, he had a sort of sweet naivety that seemed to become more and more attractive the longer Dean spoke to him. He'd only known the guy a day and yet all he wanted to do was run his fingers through that delicious sex hair and protect him no matter what.

"Um, yeah sure I'd like that" Cas smiled softly, glancing down at the table before reaching down to sort out his satchel.

"It's a date" Dean grinned.

"WHAT! No, no it's not" Cas screeched, leaping out of his chair quickly before grasping his bag to his chest, his breathing labored and quickening as if having a panic attack.

"Woah, Cas…" Dean spoke, his hands coming up in front of him in an attempt to calm the younger boy.

"It's not a date okay, I'm not gay!" he screamed, unaware at the sudden silence that filled the room as all eyes turned on them.

"Okay, okay, it's not a date. Jesus Cas it was just a figure of speech no need to throw a hissy" Dean growled as he attempted to hide the rejection. A look of horror clouded the young Hufflepuff's face. His already pale skin turned white as he stared at Dean before finally realizing that they were the center of attention.

"I-I'm sorry. OH god I'm so sorry" he mumbled quickly before racing out of the room. An awkward silence filled the room, cut only by the bell ringing for next period. The greenhouse was filled with students bustling to get to next lesson. Amongst their hushed chatter Dean could already here the words "Dean…new guy…gay….horrible" so no doubt it would be all round the school before lunch.

"Dean? Are you all right?" Professor Longbottom asked gently, his hand reaching out to touch the boy's shoulder. Dean shook him off angrily.

"Fine" he muttered before storming out of the room.


End file.
